Literary notes about Prominence (AI summary)
The term "prominence" is employed in diverse ways throughout literature to denote both tangible elevation and abstract significance. It can describe a striking physical feature—be it the solid ridges of a landscape or the pronounced contours of a face [1][2][3]—while also signifying a status of recognition or importance in society and ideas. Authors use it to highlight characters or institutions that have risen to positions of influence [4][5][6] and to give certain words or phrases rhetorical weight, ensuring that key details stand out amid the narrative [7][8]. In this multifaceted manner, "prominence" functions as a bridge between literal and metaphorical meaning across literary works.
- This ridgy prominence is due to the solidity of the rock, and to the softness of the shales above and below it.
— from Paradise Lost by John Milton - His chin, too, had the prominence and squareness which mark the man of determination.
— from A Study in Scarlet by Arthur Conan Doyle - There was a singular prominence about his bearded chin which marked a man who was not to be easily turned from his purpose.
— from The Sign of the Four by Arthur Conan Doyle - A number of them, on the contrary, had brought their owners wealth and prominence.
— from How the Other Half Lives: Studies Among the Tenements of New York by Jacob A. Riis - Not a few achieve place and prominence in their new surroundings.
— from How the Other Half Lives: Studies Among the Tenements of New York by Jacob A. Riis - The reference is to a group of freethinkers who came into prominence in King William's reign.
— from The Rape of the Lock, and Other Poems by Alexander Pope - The break between them serves the purpose of a rhetorical pause, throwing into prominence some detail of the action.
— from The Elements of Style by William Strunk - The effectiveness of the periodic sentence arises from the prominence which it gives to the main statement.
— from The Elements of Style by William Strunk
